What happens when three hundred alleged squatters go head-to-head with an enormous city government looking to develop the place where they live? As anthropologist Michael Herzfeld shows in this book; the answer can be surprising. He tells the story of Pom Mahakan; a tiny enclave in the heart of old Bangkok whose residents have resisted authorities’ demands to vacate their homes for a quarter of a century. It’s a story of community versus government; of old versus new; and of political will versus the law. Herzfeld argues that even though the residents of Pom Mahakan have lost every legal battle the city government has dragged them into; they have won every public relations contest; highlighting their struggle as one against bureaucrats who do not respect the age-old values of Thai/Siamese social and cultural order. Such values include compassion for the poor and an understanding of urban space as deeply embedded in social and ritual relations. In a gripping account of their standoff; Herzfeld—who simultaneously argues for the importance of activism in scholarship—traces the agile political tactics and styles of the community’s leadership; using their struggle to illuminate the larger difficulties; tensions; and unresolved debates that continue to roil Thai society to this day.
#454925 in Books 2015-10-27Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.00 x 1.20 x 6.00l; 1.40 #File Name: 022628610X360 pages
Review
